Ye Liao
Ye Liao was a Nightwatcher, as well as the ancestor of Ye Yan and the husband of Xiahou Shan. Background In the original timeline, in the year of 1860, Ye Liao was part of the assassination team sent to assassinate Che Yongtai's previous incarnation, and succeeded since he survived and eventually married Xiahou Shan. His cold attitude and the rumours about Nightwatchers caused Huang Yuanqing to believe that Nightwatchers are all arrogant, and his introverted personality caused him to not bother clearing the rumours and assume that Huang Yuanqing also believed in them, this resulted in the two never interacting at all during or after the mission. In the new timeline alternated by Ye Yan, Ye Yan's actions caused Huang Yuanqing to gain a new perspective on Nightwatchers, and caused her to greet Ye Liao when meeting him, and resulted in a greeting in response from him. This caused a change in history, as the two became close allies who would care for each other and were even willing to block deadly attacks for the other person. Their relationship eventually evolved into love, and as a result, Ye Liao married Huang Yuanqing and Xiahou Shan (polygamy was allowed back then), causing the disappearance of Huang Xiaoyan in the original timeline. Personality Ye Liao initially seems cold and emotionless, though it is later revealed that he is in fact an introvert, and doesn't like to talk much. Due to the rumours of Nightwatchers being arrogant and prideful when in reality they just aren't able to meet most people's expectations, Ye Liao prefers to act cold instead of humble in response, which resulted in him not interacting much with the rest of the assassination team during the mission or after it in the original timeline. Appearance Unlike his ancestor Ye Chong and his descendant Ye Yan, Ye Liao has black hair instead of blonde hair, though the rest of his facial features bear resemblance to them, such as the turquoise eyes and the mole under his left eye. While as a Night Conqueror, he wore the black robe that appears on Nightwatchers whenever they become Night Conquerors by manifesting it through energy. Abilities and Powers Ye Liao was the representative guardian of the Nightwatchers and part of the assassination team sent to kill Che Yongtai's previous incarnation, proving that he is formidably powerful. He wields five Demon Flags, an extremely difficult, but incredible feat, as even those who wield four flags are considered prodigies. Weapons * Soul Gong (镇魂锣): A main branch Nightwatcher exclusive weapon. If struck by the Soul Mallet, it can produce a sound that either knocks out anyone within close proximity to the gong or temporarily immobilizes anyone who heard the sound other than Nightwatchers, who have certain levels of immunity to the sound produced. However, if repeatedly struck, the immunity will start to weaken and eventually the Nightwatcher themselves will be affected by the sound, showing signs such as extreme fatigue and nose bleeding. Even if they are shattered, Soul Gongs can still produce the immobilizing sound if the pieces are taped back together and can be welded back together through unknown methods. The immobilizing effect only works on the receivers' bodies, therefore it can't stop someone from mentally controlling or summoning a weapon. * Soul Mallet (镇魂锤): A main branch Nightwatcher exclusive weapon, it can be used to strike the Soul Gong to create an immobilizing sound or physical attacks. When a Nightwatcher experiences true darkness, they become Night Conquerors and the Soul Mallet's power increases drastically, capable of producing large explosions when hitting inorganic substances and destroying a monster's soul along with its body in one direct hit. * Demon Flags (煌妖幡): A Nightwatcher exclusive weapon, it is used to capture monsters, atomize their bodies into green smoke along with their soul and enslave them as Flag Demons for eternity. Flag Demons are capable of making themselves invisible and intangible by turning themselves into green smoke, they are also able to solidify themselves to deal a surprise attack. Nightwatchers are also able to telepathically communicate with their Flag Demons within a few hundred meters. According to Wang Shengli, a Nightwatcher that can control more than four flags is able to store three Flag Demons at most in one flag, therefore Ye Liao should be able to control fifteen Flag Demons. Nightwatcher exclusive techniques * Penta-Shockwave (五方烈震): By slamming the Soul Mallet onto the ground, a Nightwatcher can create a shockwave strong enough to send debris flying everywhere, this move is typically used to create an opening for attacks. * Night Conqueror (黑夜主宰): The ultimate form achievable by a Nightwatcher. Due to the invention of lights, there is no more literal darkness, which made the Nightwatchers' strength devolve over time. However, when experiencing true darkness, a talented Nightwatcher will awaken their latent powers and become a Night Conqueror, donning an attire similar to Ye Chong's by manifesting it through energy alone. As a Night Conqueror, Nightwatchers gain a significant boost in power, as a simple toss from their Soul Mallets can create a gigantic explosion, and a sixth sense that is able to accurately detect things in the darkness, regardless of the other five senses. They also gain an aura similar to Ximen Guanren's Leader Aura, which makes demons and monsters submissive towards them. The power gained by a Nightwatcher while in this mode is dependent on the number of Demon Flags they can wield (which is influenced by the purity of their heritage or hard work), as shown when a Night Conqueror wielding five Demon Flags was easily defeated by Che Yongtai's previous incarnation while Ye Yan, a wielder of eight Demon Flags is stated to be stronger than a demon lord at their prime by Left-hand Man. Ye Liao's techniques * Golden Scale Seal.png|Golden Scale Seal MidnightSoulGong.png|Midnight Soul Gong AlmightySoulMallet.png|Almighty Soul Mallet SoulShatteringMallet.png|Soul Shattering Mallet Golden Scale Seal (金鳞绝咒): A sealing technique that allows the user to gain three times their original power, and awaken latent abilities within them for one hour by releasing the energy other people stored within them beforehand, at the cost of lowering their power to less than one third of their original strength while the power is sealed. Once released, the user will release a pillar of destructive light, as well as have their powers tripled. * Midnight Soul Gong (暗夜镇魂锣): After awakening his Night Conqueror form and having his power tripled, Ye Liao was able to significantly enlarge his Soul Gong and use it as a shield, which was durable enough to break through materials created by Che Yongtai 's previous incarnation's Earth Magic. * Almighty Soul Mallet (神通镇魂锤): After awakening his Night Conqueror form and having his power tripled, Ye Liao was able to elongate his Soul Mallet at will, increasing its range and power as well. * Soul Shattering Mallet (碎魂锤): Ye Liao's strongest attack. By gathering energy into his Soul Mallet while it is elongated, the front of Ye Liao's Soul Mallet will glow green and its destructive power will increase significantly. Category:Characters Category:Deceased Category:Nightwatchers Category:Humans